2000 Archibald Prize-winner, enfant terrible and currently Australia’s most collected contemporary artist.

His works skilfully combine irreverent humour with an astute sensitivity to society.

He merges high and low cultural influences in works which are defined by their iridescent colours and bold gestural marks.

Ashley Crawford described Adam Cullen…“as a whirlwind of contradictions…He seduces and repels – both on canvas and in the flesh – in equal measure…”

Through all that brash and abrupt application, we can find the artists sensitivity and honesty, expressing his own grave doubts about himself and the world around him.



Adam Cullen was born in Sydney in 1965. He graduated from the City Art Institute with a Diploma of Professional Art in 1987 and received a Master of Fine Arts from the University of New South Wales in 1999. He has exhibited broadly in individual and group exhibitions both in Australia and overseas. In 2002 he represented Australia at the 25th Biennale de Sao Paulo.

He gained early fame at art school by dragging around a rotting pig’s head chained to his ankle. He raised eyebrows by collaborating with the infamous Mark ‘Chopper’ Read for their children’s book, Hooky the Cripple. Cullen was well established as a Sydney ‘grunge’ artist when he won the prestigious Archibald Prize for his portrait of actor David Wenham in 2000.

The artist uses a highly personal visual language to address a broad range of topics including crime, masculinity and cowboy culture. He merges high and low cultural influences in works which are defined by their iridescent colours and bold gestural marks. His works skilfully combine irreverent humour with an astute sensitivity to society.

Wayne Tunnicliffe describes how “Cullen’s paintings are raw, aggressive and angry with, at times a narcotic intensity. They are also empathic, melancholic and expressive. In many paintings, beauty can be found in such formal elements as his use of colours, the ways paint is applied to the canvas, how people, words and things are arranged on the monochromatic backgrounds.”

Adam Cullen is represented by Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne; Kaliman Gallery, Sydney; Heiser Gallery, Brisbane; and Greenaway Art Gallery, Adelaide. His work has been widely collected. It is held in The Australian National Gallery as well as numerous public and private collections.

The opening of the Cullen hotel in 2009 cements the artist’s status as one of the most successful living Australian artists.

• Albrecht Dürer - Germany 1471–1528
• Francisco Goya Y Lucientes - Spain 1746–1828
• Otto Dix - Germany 1891–1969
• Francis Bacon - Ireland/England 1909–92
• Philip Guston - USA 1913–80
• Sidney Nolan - Australia/UK 1917–92
• Mike Parr - Australia b1945

"Endurance is more important than truth" Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne;
Kaliman Gallery, Sydney;
Heiser Gallery, Brisbane;
Greenaway Art Gallery, Adelaide.

His work has been widely collected. It is held in The Australian National Gallery as well as numerous public and private collections.

AGNSW Cullen Education Notes

Adam Cullen Wikipedia

The Cullen art interpretation brochure (pdf)